The Foot Locker Scholar Athletes Program Kicks Off for the Fifth Consecutive Year

Foot Locker's Search for Twenty of the Nation's Most Inspiring Young Leaders Starts Today.

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Oct 06, 2015, 09:14 ET

NEW YORK, Oct. 6, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Foot Locker Foundation today announces the launch of its 2015-2016 Foot Locker Scholar Athletes Program. The program, now in its fifth consecutive year, awards $20,000 college scholarships to outstanding student athletes who demonstrate exceptional academic ability and strong leadership skills in sports, school and within their communities. This year, the Foundation is proud to announce the addition of the Ken C. Hicks Scholarship, which will be awarded to one of the 20 students selected, in honor of the organization's former Chairman and CEO, who played an instrumental role in the development of the program. The scholarship recognizes Ken's deep commitment to academic excellence and will award an additional $5,000 (for a total of $25,000) to one extraordinary student who exemplifies elevated academic achievement, personal passion, and a true love of the game.

For the fifth consecutive year, the Foot Locker Foundation is honoring twenty exceptional high school student-athletes with $20,000 college scholarships for being inspiring leaders on the field, in their classrooms, and in their communities.

"We are very pleased to enhance our Foot Locker Scholar Athletes Program this year with the addition of the Ken C. Hicks scholarship, underscoring our Company's deep commitment to academic excellence," states Richard A. Johnson, President and CEO of Foot Locker, Inc. "The program strives to make a college education, and the benefits associated with it, a reality for hard-working students who have exhibited an outstanding potential for leadership. Our goal is to empower young adults who demonstrate strong initiative both in their team locker rooms and in their classrooms and communities."

Today, high school students and their families are faced with the skyrocketing costs of higher education. Many talented students are hindered in their pursuit of college dreams by the significant financial burden associated with a college education. Last year, the average cost of a private, four-year, not-for-profit university was $31,231— an expense that could eat into two-thirds of the household income for the median U.S. family[1]. Faced with such unmanageable college costs, an unprecedented number of students and families are resorting to taking out loans. This year, cumulative student debt reached $1.2 trillion.

The availability of scholarship programs such as the Foot Locker Foundation's can make a real difference in the affordability of a college education. This year's twenty winners will join the program's four previous classes of Foot Locker Scholar Athletes, which will result in 100 total scholarship recipients over the five years since the program's inception in 2011. With our 2016 Class, the Foot Locker Foundation will have invested $2 million in the education and future of some of America's most promising scholar-athletes.

Applicants must be college-bound in the Fall of 2016, be an active participant in a sports-related activity, and maintain at least a 3.0 unweighted GPA. Participants will be required to submit two essays and one recommendation to be considered for the scholarship. Students can apply online or be nominated by teachers, coaches, mentors, family and friends by visiting footlockerscholarathletes.com. Applications close December 17, 2015 at 5:00 p.m. (EST).

The Foot Locker Scholar Athletes Program is a part of the Foot Locker Foundation, the charitable arm of Foot Locker, Inc., which provides monetary support for educational and sports programs across the country. Supporting this all-star program is Fastweb, a trusted scholarship and financial aid resource used by students to help find opportunities to pay for school.

About Foot Locker Foundation:
Founded in 2001, Foot Locker Foundation is the charitable arm of Foot Locker, Inc., a specialty athletic retailer that operates approximately 3,500 stores in 23 countries in North America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand. Since its inception, the Foundation has developed significant partnerships, programs, and initiatives to improve and enrich communities across the country. Our mission is to promote a better world for today's youth by creating, developing, and supporting innovative educational programs and encouraging health and well-being through physical activity.

About Fastweb:
Fastweb, a top site in the Monster Worldwide (NYSE:MWW) network, is the nation's recognized leader in helping students pay for school, by providing scholarship and financial aid information, as well as information on jobs and internships. One out of three college-bound seniors use the site, and more than 50 million users have benefitted from Fastweb's information and services. Fastweb lets students create personalized profiles that can be matched against its expansive databases of colleges and scholarships. As the oldest and most popular free online scholarship matching service, the database has more than 1.5 million scholarships totaling over $3.4 billion. To learn more about Fastweb, visit www.fastweb.com and follow Fastweb on social media for the latest on paying for school all year long: Twitter (at @PayingForSchool); Facebook; Pinterest; Google+.

[1] CBS News (http://www.cnbc.com/2015/06/16/why-college-costs-are-so-high-and-rising.html)

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20151005/274200

SOURCE Foot Locker Foundation, Inc.